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On the local scale it is most appropriate to say that the primary social organizing unit in Bajau society is the household, the backbone of which is the nuclear family, but which often expands to stem family arrangements, depending upon the stage in the development cycle of the household.

Kinship is of obvious importance in shaping the structure of the household and various areas under its domain, such as inheritance and the care of elderly parents, but the Bajau household is governed more by choice of residence than prescribed family roles.

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Fishmonger

Sometimes, Bajau society trades.

Trade also occupies a central place in the Bajau economy, and historically, the Bajau were highly valued for their specialized seafaring skills.

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Fisherman

The Bajau people are the second largest indigenous group in Sabah is the Bajau, a collective term for a predominantly Muslim people and their kindred groups.On the east coast however many of the Sea Bajaus still live in the traditional way.

Fishing is the main activity. While many have settled on land or in water villages, some are still nomadic boat dwellers.

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The land-oriented Sama (sometimes called Sama Dilaya or Sama Diliya) live in fully land-based farming communities (especially in western Sabah).
Agriculture
The main food crops:
rice
cassava (manioc)
corn (maize)
bananas
tomatoes
yams
beans
other fruits and vegetables

Ginger and sugarcane are also grown, and coconuts are raised for the commercial production of copra. Trade has always been an important component of the Bajau economy. They are largely dispersed throughout the southern Philippines and eastern Indonesia due to their involvement in the regional sea cucumber trade, especially in the 17th–19th century.

Other economic activities:
Rearing buffalo,  cattle and horses.
Travelling to interior communities in rice harvesting in return for a share of the crop.

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Merisik
Before the marriage took place, the man-side family merisik girls who become candidates. After geting assurance that the girl is single or not and suitable with man-side family the followed by engagement.

Propose
In the event, the men take the ring, clothes and cash for engagement.Time engagement usually for one year to allow the men to make preparation. The female-side family determines the number of buffaloes will be presented to a wedding. The more the number of buffaloes, the richer the men-side family is.

Marriage Ceremony: Day before the marriage, the future groom and women will make-up by several people called ‘mak andam’. Dandanan include bath powder with powder ingredients rice flour mixed flowers at night. At weddings, bridal dress decorated with a new, usually yellow and green made from silk. Hair bride adorned with 'serempak'. Serempak is a crown. The groom wore a yellow complete with tanjak and armed with kris.

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-Do not use mirrors at night
-Do not sit on the stairs
-Do not cut nails at night
-Do not sleep with wet hair
-Do not sing at the kitchen
-Do not bring babies out at night
-Do not use cracked plates

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-Disposal of waste in the sea
-Spitting in the sea
-Catching small fishes

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-Strictly follows an ethical system called "Pamali"
-Pamali = Forbidden
-Pamali helps the Bajau tribe to sustain the environment they live in

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Accessories:

mandapun
- Flat cloth-covered collar-ornament accentuating the neckline decorated with leaves in silver or goldleaf.

sarempak
- Two-piece head decoration in the shape of a ship made of silver or gold. Small ornaments dangling down from both ends are called garigai. The ornament is fitted around the hairbun on top of the head, three fingers away from the hairline.

subang
- ear pendants.

keku
- Long tapered, gold, silver or brass fingercovers worn by the bride.

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The Bajau are Sunni Muslims of the Shafi school. Claims to religious piety and learning are an important source of individual prestige, and persons considered descendants of the Prophet (  salip ) are shown special deference. Perceived differences in degrees of Islamic practice are also associated with the relative status of different Bajau groups. Those most closely identified with the historical trading states of the region are generally regarded as the most orthodox, with the Bajau Laut, as the most peripheral group, seen by others as living outside the faith, as non-Muslims. Owing to their boat-nomadic way of life, Bajau Laut moorage groups lack mosques. For those ashore, the mosque represents the primary focus of community leadership and religion. In adopting settled village life, the members of Bajau Laut communities normally construct a mosque in addition to individual houses, and so undergo not only ethnic assimilation but also overt Islamization. Sedentarization is thus marked by a change of religious status, and by the emergence of newly recognized positions of community leadership.

Religious Practitioners

Except for boat-nomadic groups, every parish is served by a set of mosque officials. These include an imam, who leads parish members in prayer; a  bilal, who performs the call to prayer; and a  hatib, who gives the Friday mosque reading. The imam also officiates at life-crisis rituals, counsels parish members in religious and legal matters, and leads them in prayer during minor rites of thanksgiving. In times of misfortune or crises, other religious practitioners may also be consulted, including midwives, herbalist-curers, spirit mediums, and diviners.

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Selendang
-Scarf worn over shoulders

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Costume of Men

Badu             Brightly coloured satiny blouse, usually green, with flared sleeves showing cuffs of underblouse in contrasting hue. The flared sleeves are two inches longer than the out-stretched arms and hands. Used for weddings. Betawi buttons in front, sometimes also on the sleeves.

Suar             Trousers made of similar material in contrasting colour and red trimming. Black for weddings.

Tanjak         Headdress of folded kain dastar (used for weddings). Podong, used by horseman.

Ingkot Pangkat    Silver coin belt with a wide buckle with an attachment called supu which is a round silver Bajau cigarette case.

Selendang    Sash tied around the waist.

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Olos Berangkit
-Full length black skirt
-Exclusive wedding costume
-Rarely used nowdays

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Kain Mogah
-Long Skirt
-Handwoven with horizontal stripes
-Usually in red & black

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Badu Sipak
-Brightly coloured blouse -Usually in yellow colour
-Worn in weddings

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- Boat building
- Pottery making
- Weaving
- Blacksmithing
- Inter-island Trade and Transport

~ Specialized crafts
- Kajang Mats
- Woodcarving
- Pandanus Mats

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1. Kulintangan
-an idiophone of between 7 and 9 knobbed gongs suspended horizontally in a wooden frame.
-provides the main melodic line
-played by women, together with suspended gongs and drums.2. Gabbang
-a wooden xylophone, normally of 7 keys, is played by women, either as a solo instrument or in accompaniment to singing and dancing.
-the main dancing form that employs the gabbing is called daling-daling, which is usually performed at weddings, in which male and female dancers exchange improvised verses of a song.

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Bajau Samal Dilaut Sabah Borneo Traditional Dance

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Bajau Samal Dilaut Sabah Borneo Traditional Dance

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Dance by the Bajau Samal from Sabah.This dance is called Igal-Igal.

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1. Sagol
- In Bajau, it means mixture
- Usually cooked with stingray, fish. Eg. Buntal fish
- There are 2 types of Sagol: Dry Sagol (no gravy) & Wet Sagol (with gravy)2. Kilau
- Main ingredient is fish
- Should be cooked, not eaten raw
- Even eaten raw, flesh of the fish is safe & clean when mixed with vinegar & lemon
- Other ingredients used: mango, peppers, onions, tomatoes, ginger

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Handed down orally through generations

Marriage celebration (Kanduli Pagkawin)

Accompanied by dance (Pang-igal)

Accompanied by musical instruments : Flute, Xylophone / electronic keyboard

Famous songs : Dalling Dalling, Duldang Duldang, and Pakiring Pakiring

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1. Balangigi
2.Siasa Sama
3.Sinama
4.Pangutaran Sama
5.Mapun
6.Yakan
7.Abaknon
8.Indonesian Bajau
9.West coast Bajau

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Limbai Dance
~ Performed by female dancers.
~ wedding ceremonies/ festival celebration
~ It reflects the harmony and the closeness of the members in the tribe.
Horse Dance (Kuda- kuda )
~ Performed by male dancers.
Porcelain Horse Dance (Kuda Pasu)
~ Performed by couples
Igal- Igal dance (eagle dance )
~ wedding ceremonies
~ performed by female dancers.

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Boats and boating--Equipment and supplies

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Modernity for the West Coast Bajau of Malaysia

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Modernity for the West Coast Bajau of Malaysia

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Thousands of children who live in plantations or are part of indigenous communities are without access to basic education because of legal status, distance and poverty.
Opportunity
Since 1996, Humana Child Aid Society Sabah has been providing primary education for these stateless children. More importantly, education gives them a hope for their future.

The Humana Learning Centres have provided them with the opportunity to gain basic education and after that, a chance to move on to find employment in shops, restaurants or as tour guides.

There are 128 learning centres providing education for over 12000 Bajau Laut children who do not have access to government schools.

Challenges
- Sabah is a complex area, both geographically and socially, especially as it is located on the edge of a ‘fluid archipelago'
- Lack of proper classrooms to provide the quality education
-  Bajau Laut have no legal nationality documents bonding them to a State.They are stateless. They are highly vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. The Bajau Laut are a classic example of a protracted and intergenerational statelessness situation. Children, the majority of whom were born in Sabah and have never set foot in another country, are particularly at risk.
Solutions
The new addition of the school building will not only help in creating equal opportunities for the Sama-Bajaus and the children of Bakod Bayan, improving the quality of education in Bakod Bayan Elementary School by creating a better environment that is conducive for learning.

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Commonly, many sub-groups of Bajau are named after the place or island they live-in for many years. Even though they are called Bajau, each sub-groups has their own unique language, cultures and tradition. However, certain sub-groups are able to understand the languages of other sub-groups. For example, some Bajau understand the Bajau Ubian language, and the Bajau Ubian and Simunul in Sabah are able to understand and speak the Tausug language called the Suluk language in Sabah. The general terms for the native languages of the Bajau is Вahasa Вajau or Sinama.

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The various Bajau sub-groups vary culturally, linguistically, and religiously. Religion can vary from a strict adherence to Sunni Islam, forms of folk Islam, to animistic beliefs in spirits and ancestor worship. There is a small minority of Christians.

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The West Coast Bajau of Sabah, Malaysia belong to a cluster of peoples related culturally and linguistically, generally known to outsiders by the name of 'Bajau' or its variants (e.g., Badjaw, Badjao, Bajao, Bajo). The Bajau peoples most commonly refer to themselves as Sama. Their total number has been estimated at 750,000 to 900,000 . They are dispersed widely across the coasts and islands of the Sulu Archipelago, Borneo, and eastern Indonesia. The Bajau have traditionally been known as sea-nomads, involved in extensive maritime trading and dwelling in boats. However, the great majority of Bajau are now sedentary house dwellers . While some such Bajau continue to derive their livelihood primarily from the sea, others have adopted an agrarian way of life.

In Sabah, there are two groups of Bajau, the West Coast Bajau and the East Coast Bajau. The dichotomy of land versus sea orientation is readily observed in these two groups. The West Coast Bajau, settled slightly inland along the western and northern coasts, have become proficient in rice cultivation and livestock rearing, whereas the East Coast Bajau, settled along Sabah's east coast and particularly in Semporna, are more sea-orientated. The distinction between the West and East Coast Bajau extends beyond the land/sea orientation. Intelligibility testing has confirmed that the West Coast Bajau and East Coast Bajau speak separate languages

Bajau groups had reached Southern Sulu and the northeast coast of Borneo. Origin myths among the Bajau themselves suggest a more recent arrival to the Sulu Archipelago which would put the time of their arrival at sometime in the late 14th century. Although it is not certain when the West Coast Bajau initially settled in Kota Belud, their presence here has been documented since Spencer St. John wrote about them in the 1850's and 1860's.